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Indonesia pulls out of Singapore show amid row

The Associated Press

Updated:
02/09/2014 10:45:48 PM EST

SINGAPORE—Indonesian defense officials have pulled out of the Singapore Airshow amid an escalating row over Jakarta's decision to name a warship after two commandos who carried out a deadly bombing in the city state during the 1960s.

The decision follows criticism last week by Singapore over the naming of the frigate, which it said risked reopening "old wounds."

A Singapore Defense Ministry statement said Indonesia's armed forces commander and other top officials had informed it that they would not attend the show, which began Monday. It didn't give a reason. It was unclear whether Indonesia's Jupiter Aerobatic Team was also boycotting the show.

Indonesia named a refurbished frigate the "KRI Usman Harun" after the two commandos, Usman Haji Mohamed Ali and Harun Said. The two men were sent by Indonesia to bomb an office in what is now Orchard Road in 1965 as part of President Sukarno's "confrontation" policy with the Federation of Malaysia, which at that time included Singapore.

The bombing, part of a wave of low-level attacks against the state, killed three people and wounded many more.

They two commandos were arrested and executed a few years later.

Indonesian officials were not immediately available for comment Monday, but they have defended the decision to name the ship after the men. Coordinating Minister for Political and Security Djoko Suyanto said Indonesia has its own procedures in deciding whether someone is regarded a hero or not, regardless of a "differing perception" from other countries.

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Tensions between wealthy, small Singapore and its giant and still developing neighbor Indonesia occasionally flare over issues such as haze from burning plantations on Sumatra and allegations that Indonesian corruption suspects use the country's banking system to keep ill-gotten gains.